CV Writing Tips For Freshers

Even if you get shortlisted for an interview, a seasoned interviewer will be able to sniff out your lies easily.

DON’T PAD WITH IRRELEVANT POINTS:

1. Don’t talk about your parents and their professions.

2. Don’t use large fonts with extra spacing between lines.

3. Don’t dedicate an entire paragraph listing down all the ways in which you could be contacted (a phone and an email is sufficient).

DON’T FORCE IT TO BE TWO PAGES:

Let the content decide how many pages it will consume.

EXPAND ON YOUR PROJECTS & INTERNSHIPS

Your academic projects & corporate internships are the relevant areas where you SHOULD expand and provide more details. Add sub-headings with a list of relevant points under each sub-heading.

ACADEMIC PROJECTS

1. Project Overview: What was the project about?

2. Technical Approach / Research Methodology: How did you approach this academic project?

3. Key Findings/ Takeaways: What were your findings? You can also add charts to showcase your conclusions.

CORPORATE INTERNSHIPS

1. Organization Overview: Give an overview of the organization you interned at. MBA Fresher can also include an analysis of the organization & its industry (competitive analysis, Porter’s 5 Forces etc.)

2. Roles & Responsibilities: What were your assigned tasks and how did you fulfill them?

3. Key Learnings: What did you learn from this brief foray into the corporate world?

EARN YOUR CV POINTS

ORGANIZE A CLUB OR AN EVENT:

Organize an event or start a new club on Campus. You can start something small (say a chess club), conduct an event or competition and invite your friends to participate.

START AN ONLINE BLOG:

Start an online blog. Write about your passions. Provide a link with some description in your Resume.

SHARE CODE ON GITHUB:

Work on an interesting software project, something others might be interested in (say a 2D game). Publish the code on Github and share the link on your CV.

PARTICIPATE AND WIN!

Take full advantage of all opportunities inside and outside your Campus. ToastMasters, BookWorm Clubs, Campus Fests, Coding Challenges, Quizzes, Olympiads and many more.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

Your Resume is not just a way for you to convey your achievements. It is also a great way for you to guide the course of your interview.

FAVOURITE ACADEMIC SUBJECTS:

You can mention your favourite subjects in your Resume and why you liked them. This is an opportunity for you to guide the course of your interview towards your strengths.

BOOKS YOU’VE READ & BLOGS YOU FOLLOW:

1. A science-fiction fan? Mention the books you’ve read.

2. An MBA grad? Talk about some Management books you’ve read.

3. Are you inspired by someone? Mention a biography of that person.

GRAB THE RECRUITER’S EYE

A Recruiter looks at thousands of Resumes in a month. Make yours stand out!

USE POWER VERBS:

These are some of the verbs and phrases that Recruiters look for: took initiative, led, executed, implemented, envisioned, created, developed, spearheaded, delivered, showcased, organized, won. Use powerful, achievement-oriented verbs and bold the necessary parts that you want to stand out.

USE NUMBERS TO BREAK THE MONOTONY OF TEXT:

The human eye tends to glaze over a wall of text. Use numbers to grab the focus.

1. Organized an event with 12000+ participants.

2. Won second place among 35 participants.

3. Created 12 blog posts with a total of audience reach of 4370 views during the course of my 2 month Content Marketing Internship.

PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD

RE-ORGANIZE YOUR RESUME:

1. Do you have a strong academic track record? Start off with that.

2. Do you have a long, impressive list of extra-curricular achievement? Start off with that.

3. Re-organize your Resume so that you start off with a positive impression.

THE LITTLE DETAILS DO MATTER:

1. If you’re adding a photo, make sure you’re wearing something formal and professional

2. This goes without saying… Ensure that there are no spelling or grammatical mistakes. Use an advanced grammar checker like “grammarly” https://www.grammarly.com/

3. Have your Resume reviewed by your friends and others once. They may catch something that you’ve missed.

4. Do you have a signature statement? Personalize it in a way that captures your spirit.

THE FINAL TOUCHES

TWEAK YOUR RESUME FOR THE ORGANIZATION:

Have variations of your Resume with minor tweaks for different industries and organizations.

Make these final touches keeping in mind the organization that you’re applying for.

BE PREPARED ON EVERY CV POINT:

An interviewer can focus on any point that you’ve mentioned in your Resume and ask questions on that. Be prepared to field questions related to anything you’ve mentioned in your Resume.